New Hope For A Deserving Patient

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US Marshals say Byron Perkins is a heartless father who used his son's illness as a ploy to escape.

Police say Byron Keith Perkins is a typical low-life. He's a convicted drug dealer who has a long history with the law. Perkins is also a convicted armed bank robber and has been found guilty of firearm charges in the past. He missed most of his son Destin's childhood because he was sitting in a jail cell. 

If there is any one kid who truly deserves a break, it's Destin Perkins. After his own father used his potentially fatal kidney ailment as a tool for escaping the law, Destin was left in the dust. And his father became one of the most hated fugitives in America.

As Destin dealt with his father's betrayal, he did receive some good news -- he was going to get a new kidney. Late in August 2006, Destin and his family were informed that a matching kidney was available and being transported from San Diego to Louisville.  Destin got the implant as soon as possible and his body accepted the kidney. He was treated at Kosair Children's Hospital in Louisville, Kentucky and is doing well.  Still, the hunt continues for his father, Byron Perkins, and Perkins' fugitive girlfriend LeaAnn Howard.

Perkins Said His Dying Son Needed Him

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Investigators believe Perkins is on the run with his girlfriend, LeaAnn Howard.

It all started when Perkins was in jail awaiting sentencing in a federal court for a drug dealing conviction.  He solicited a judge for a provisional release... and he played a sympathy card that no one could ever imagine he would pull out. Especially not his son Destin.  

But in January 2006, Perkins took a new interest in his son. Destin needed a kidney transplant and was getting dialysis twice a week -- no way for a 16-year-old to live. Perkins' ex-wife, Destin's mother Angie, gave one of her kidneys to her son.  Unfortunately his body rejected it.

Perkins seemed to have the best intentions and asked the judge if he could go see the doctors for initial tests to see if his kidney was compatible with his son. The judge granted the request and Perkins passed the tests with flying colors. He returned to jail, but not before Destin got a much-needed sliver of hope.

Then, on January 24, 2006, Byron Perkins was scheduled for his final rounds of tests. The next step after that was to give Destin his kidney.  Everyone was thinking very optimistically and assumed that everything would go off without a hitch.

Everyone, that is, except Byron Perkins. Cops say he saw his son's pain and suffering as his ticket to freedom.  So, when the judge again allowed him to go for testing, Perkins got out.  But, cops say, he never showed up at the hospital for his appointments.

Instead, cops say he bolted with his girlfriend LeaAnn Howard.  Howard is also no stranger to law enforcement.  She was out on bond for robbery and felony firearms charges when cops say she and Perkins fled.  Aside from the charges she's currently facing, Howard pled guilty to conspiracy to commit murder in 2002.

According to Marshals, Perkins left a note for his mother implying that he would be available when Destin needed his kidney.  They say he also wrote to his mother that she shouldn't worry about the bond money she put up for him, that Perkins would get the money back to her.  Cops say it is all a farce, and Perkins and Howard have no intention of looking out for their families whom they've left in a lurch -- especially Destin, who was clinging to life as they vanished.

Police say Howard borrowed a car and money from her mother and she and Perkins bolted together.  The car has not been recovered and has been reported stolen.

Sightings South Of The Border

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A great clue! Perkins and Howard in a picture together.

Following national media coverage, US Marshals confirmed a late February 2006 sighting in a small fishing village outside of Puerto Vallarta, Mexico.  Then, in early April 2006, the Marshals began working with the United States Diplomatic Security Service in Belize after a promising lead came in tracking the fugitive couple to the Central American nation.  Despite extensive work by the DSS and the local Belizean authorities, none of the multiple sightings have been confirmed. 

Investigators believe Perkins and Howard are probably still in Mexico, scrambling to make ends meet.  Marshals say they could be hitchhiking through the country or victimizing innocent civilians along the way.

Howard might be working unskilled day labor jobs. Perkins, meanwhile, has been hanging out at bars, getting into fights... and losing them.

You can find more about where and how you can help people suffering from kidney failure through the National Kidney Foundation  and at the United Network for Organ Sharing.

Wanted For:

• Violating Conditions of Supervised Release , Louisville , KY ; Jan 24, 2006

(Information valid as of June 26, 2007)

Associated Persons:

LeaAnn Howard
Cops believe Byron Perkins and his girlfriend, LeaAnn Howard, are on the run together.
Fugitive
»More information

Television Airings:

• »June 16, 2007
• »December 30, 2006
• »May 27, 2006
• »March 25, 2006
• »March 18, 2006

AMW Radio:

• »May 08 2007
• »December 23 2006
• »May 02 2006
• »April 03 2006
• »March 24 2006
• »March 17 2006

AMW Capture #936

Fugitive Couple Pin-Pointed South Of The Border

Byron Perkins and LeaAnn Howard first came to everyone's attention when they landed on top of two infamous lists:  the US Marshals Top 15 list and John Walsh's Dirty Dozen.  The fugitive couple earned their spots because of how they escaped federal custody.  Cops say Perkins used his son Destin's kidney condition as an excuse for a medical release.  Perkins told a judge that he wanted to donate a kidney to his son, who was on dialysis and living a very limited life.  The judge agreed and Perkins allegedly bolted, leaving Destin in a fight for his life alone. 

Perkins and Howard had been on the run for more than a year when cops started looking closely at several tips from AMW. The tips placed Perkins and Howard in Mexico. The US Marshals' in Mexico City and the Mexican Federale police zeroed in on the resort town of Puerto Vallarta.

Perkins and Howard started to feel the heat and police couldn't locate them. However, AMW tips continued to come in from south of the border mentioning Puerto Vallarta.

After months of follow-up, cops pin-pointed Perkins and Howard.  They were arrested in Puerto Vallarta without incident on April 25, 2007.

Because the couple was in the country illegally, they were quickly deported from Mexico to California.  Then, they will face extradition hearings about their return to Kentucky where they will finally face the drug and escape charges.

Perkins' son, Destin, received a kidney from a cadaver donor in August of 2006.  Thankfully, his body did not reject it and he has enjoyed a full and healthy life since.

With the arrest of Perkins and Howard, there are now two vacancies on the Marshals Top 15 and the John Walsh Dirty Dozen.